Little Bird On A Boat
by xmishuyax
Summary: Italian sisters Giulia and Fausta Uccellino have acquired tickets to board the most famous ship of their time: Titanic. This first-person narrative of Giulia's experiences include friendship, love, deception, and horror as she embarks on the famous journey. Will Giulia and her new companions survive the tragic collision? Only the Atlantic can determine their fate.
1. Chapters 1-2

AUTHOR'S DISCLAIMER: I attempted to the best of my ability to follow the events and quotes of the movie as closely as I could. I did, however, change a few circumstances to coincide with a friend's fanfiction. My story is a sort of fanfiction of HER fanfiction. It's easy to follow, though, I'm American. Enjoy!

Chapter 1

I sat in the automobile with my eyes staring out the window, and my  
hands nervously folded in my lap. The sun settled comfortably in the high sky.  
It reflected off of the ocean, making the rippling waves sparkle at every inch.  
I smiled at the shape shifting clouds.

"We're here!" my sister, Fausta, announced. My stomach did a flip as I  
tore myself away from the beautiful scenery. We're really here. I thought.  
We're really going...

The crowd was enormous. They were all buzzing with excitement. The car  
jolted as it stopped, making me gasp. Our chauffeur got out and opened my  
door for me. I took a deep breath as I took his hand and stepped out of the  
car.

My lavender dress flowed happily in the light breeze. I inhaled deeply, and  
to my happy surprise, smelled the sea— a lovely aroma. As the man closed my  
car door and walked around to let out my mother, I looked at pumps and bit  
my lower lip.

I should be ecstatic. We're going to America! We're going to live in a  
bigger house, and to top it all off, we're going on the largest ship ever made to  
get there. I squeezed my eyes shut and turned to face the ship. Just face it  
girl, it's only a ship. I opened my eyes and gasped.

It was beautiful! I saw the grand ship and it took my breath away.  
It was at least 800 feet long, and four smokestacks! It was beautifully  
crafted, even with its simple circle windows. It's a wonder how they could  
nickname this ship the Unsinkable, it looked much too heavy to even float! All  
of my dreaded thoughts and nerves ran away as someone blew the horn. I  
jumped a few inches, but I laughed.

"Come little bird, it's time to go! Only 7 minutes to departure!" my  
mother said glancing at her pocket watch.

"Yes ma'am," I said gathering our few things.

Luckily, we're not in third class, so we didn't have to waste time in the  
lice inspection. I ran past a large family waiting for the man to check them  
and looked at them with deep sympathy in my eyes. In front of me, my  
mother was a few meters ahead.

"Five minutes Giulia! Hurry!" She was skipping. My twenty six-year-old  
sister was skipping towards the Titanic. I snickered, sighed and ran after  
her, even though I, myself, am twenty.

I looked at the suitcase about to fall and didn't realize two men were in  
front of me. I ran head on into the one with the hat. My clothing suitcase  
rammed into my stomach, knocking the wind out of me. I fell to the ground  
clutching my stomach.

"Shit, Fabrizio, you all right?" the American, blonde boy asked.

"Sì, sì, help the girl," Fabrizio said in his strong Italian accent.

I lay gasping for air. When I opened my eyes, the American stared his  
bluish-green eyes into mine.

"Miss, are you okay?" He was definitely from America.

"Credo di sì," I gasped as they helped me up. I hadn't realized I was  
speaking Italian.

"Fabrizio what did she say?" the American asked confused.

"She says }I thinka so,'" Fabrizio explained.

"Sei sicuro che stai bene? Dobbiamo lasciare," He said his accent  
strengthening. He must not have known I could speak English.

"Yes I'm okay, and you can go, I'll get my things," I said finding my  
breath.

"You sure?" Blondie asked giving Fabrizio his knapsack. I nodded.

"Arrivederci!" I called after them as they ran.

"Ciao!" They called together.

I gathered my luggage and ran for the nearest entrance. I found one  
and ran as fast as I could manage. The steward let me in with two minutes to  
spare.

I walked over to the nearest wall and dropped the suitcases. I was  
panting, so a lot of people were staring at me. I straightened up and fixed my  
hat.

"Hello," I said trying to look normal. When everyone went about their  
business, I snickered and gathered my bags.

E-104, E-104. . . I thought as I walked down E-Deck. My mother and I  
got separate rooms. We're not exactly planners, so we got rooms down the hall  
from each other. She got E-97, and I got E-104. I finally found my room and  
opened the door.

A bed. A sofa. A dresser. A mirror. Two sinks. Various shelves and small  
pictures. It was lovely. I threw my luggage on the berth and turned around  
and walked to the door to explore the ship until my sister's suitcase caught  
my eye. I sighed, grabbed it, and walked back up the hallway to her room.

"Giulia! Darling! There you are!" she said as she greeted me, giving me a  
light kiss on my forehead.

"Come in," she stood out of the way so I could go in. Her room was  
similar to mine, but slightly smaller. She stole the bag from me, threw it onto  
her sofa and leaped onto her berth. She might have been 26, but she had the  
heart of a 14 year old.

"You're pazzo!" I said laughing as I ran and tickled her side.

"Okay! Okay! Stop! Ha-ha!" she begged as I refused to stop. Once I  
figured she had had enough, I lounged on the sofa.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go out and have fun! We're going to  
America! We should celebrate! Come on, go unpack and head to the deck," she  
came and nudged my arm.

"Who knows? You might meet a boy," she winked and laughed.

"Okay, okay," I agreed, "I'll have fun, but only if you do!"

"Yes, thank you for that request ma'am. Would you like a brandy for  
the walk?" She said mockingly. I laughed, blew her a kiss, and she shut her  
door to unpack. I went to my room and started to unpack as well. After I  
was almost finished, a knock came at my door.

"Is anyone in here?" a small, Norwegian accented voice asked. Puzzled, I  
answered and went to open the door. A young girl around my age was waiting  
with two suitcases. She switched one suitcase to her left hand and held out  
her right.

"I'm Helga Dahl, nice to meet you," she said shakily as I shook her hand.

"I'm Giulia Uccellino, nice to meet you too. Is this your room? There's  
only one bed."

"Oh, dear, I think so, E-103?" She asked.

"I believe that's right next door," I said with a reassuring smile.

"Sorry to disturb you miss…" She seemed rather embarrassed.

"It's all right. I'm going to up to the deck, so I'll see you around," I  
smiled at her as she went into her room.

When I got up to the deck, tons of people were actually leaving to check  
out their rooms. I didn't really care that the passengers had said goodbye to  
random people as the ship left and I hadn't. It seemed like fun, but as late as  
I was, I didn't have the time.

I breathed in deeply and smelled that same wonderful salt aroma. I  
spread my arms out, laughed, and spun in circles. When I stopped and opened  
my eyes, a steward was smiling at me.

"Having fun are we, Miss?" he said.

"Yes, very much so," I giggled. I stuck out my hand. "I'm Giulia  
Uccellino. And you are?" He seemed puzzled at my forwardness.

"I'm 5th officer Harold Lowe," He shook my hand with a smirk.

"Fifth officer, impressive Mr. Lowe," I said with my adult expression.

"Thank you, where is that accent from? Italy, am I right?" He asked  
squinting.

"Yes sir, where is your accent from?" He had a mysterious, lovely voice.

"I get asked that quite a lot, actually," he smiled and looked at the floor.

"It's Welsh; I was born in North Wales."

I nodded and a silence fell between us.

"Well, it's been a pleasure Miss Uccellino,"

"Please, just call me Giulia, Mr. Lowe, I don't like being addressed like a  
lady," I said curtsying to emphasize "lady".

"All right then, Giulia. You can call me Harry," Harry tipped his hat and  
left.

This ship's got quite a few perks. I smiled and went to the back railing.  
I was afraid of heights, so I didn't lean too far, but I was far enough to see  
the waves happily rippling below. A wisp of wind blew a long, black curl out of  
my face and comfortably blowing. I left the rail and walked around the deck  
watching the passengers.

Chapter 2

"Giulia," I heard a murmer.

"Giulia!" She said louder. I rolled over to see who it was and my nose  
collided with the wooden rail of the berth. I clutched my nose and groaned. I  
pulled on a thin robe and opened the door

"Yes?" I asked rubbing my nose. To my happy surprise, Helga was at  
the door.

"It's almost breakfast; would you like to come with me?" She asked. She  
was already dressed.

"Sure, I'll get dressed, and I'll make it quick." I pulled on a corset, and  
an attractively light blue dress, and some pumps. "Would you mind waiting while  
I get my hair done? You can come in," I opened the door wider so that she  
could walk in and sit on the sofa.

"Your room is very nice," She spoke slowly as if speaking English  
troubled her. I thought maybe I should talk the most.

I sat on my berth and opened my jewelry box in the dresser. I took out  
a delicate heart-shaped locket and looked on the inside. A small portrait of my  
father rested in the left side and my mother on the right. I smiled at the  
faded photos and closed the locket. I put it back, put on a white knit shawl,  
and ran a brush through my hair.

"Ready!" I exclaimed hopping up.

"You look wonderful! Did you meet anybody?" She said slowly with a  
smile.

"No, but you never know who you might meet," I said winking. I opened  
the door and led her out as if I were a steward.

We had an exquisite breakfast, and when Helga left to meet up with her  
parents, I decided to explore the deck once more. Many think that my sister  
and I are first class, because of the fancy clothes our mother made for us  
when she was a seamstress for first class ladies. I thought that I would put  
this belief to good use, and I went up to the first class deck. The stewards  
nodded towards me, so I assumed it had worked. I was strolling along about  
50 or so feet away from a near railing, when I was suddenly pushed forward.

"Pardon me," a British sounding girl said looking back as she walked on.  
She was a beautiful girl. Her bright red hair was extravagant and her  
stunning blue eyes sparkled in the sunlight. I nodded confirming that it was  
all right. She nodded back and continued her path to the railing. I raised my  
eyebrows and followed her. She seemed as though she were in trouble.

I walked to the railing about ten or so feet to the left of her. She  
suddenly glanced to the lower deck and back up again. She repeated the gesture.  
Drawing my eyebrows together, I followed her gaze. I almost laughed out loud!  
Blondie was staring right at her!

I had to cover my mouth with my hand so I wouldn't draw attention  
from being impolite. Fabrizio waved his hand in front of Blondie's face and  
turned, laughing towards another man whose back faced me. His pale orange  
hair blew under a brown bowler hat. He turned to look at the girl.

I whistled. He wasn't that bad looking. A little too old for me perhaps,  
but he had a nice face. With one final look at the girl, I turned to walk off the  
deck. A man with an angered expression was striding towards the girl. His  
left shoulder shoved against mine, almost knocking me over. A Czechoslovakian  
man caught me as the man cursed under his breath.

"Are you all right?" the Czech man asked. I nodded and thanked him.  
When I turned around I saw the girl leaving with a solemn expression. I

scowled as the shoulder-pushing man walked away behind her. He shot me a  
look that sent a chill up my spine. He rolled his eyes and continued to follow the  
girl.

I shook the man's glare off and walked over to the railing to see if the  
men were still there. I smiled greatly as I saw them all talking. A young blonde  
girl, probably my age, was talking to the bowler hat man. I frowned with  
jealousy. Blondie was looking at the ocean, probably thinking about the red-  
headed girl, and Fabrizio was listening to the blonde girl talk.

I huffed, propped my elbow up on the railing, and rested my chin onto  
my fist. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. I opened them and saw a younger  
man join the group. He seemed rather out of place. He was dressed as though  
he were in upper second class, possibly first. He did, however, seem comfortable  
talking to them. I smiled. It was refreshing to see someone of money being  
nice to steerage.

When he turned around, I seemed to lose my breath. He was very  
handsome. He had a mature face, with a slight boyish look. From the laughter  
of the others, he seemed rather charming. His hair was dark brown, but I  
couldn't tell the color of his eyes from the distance.

I looked down to find the bowler hat man glancing up at me. I looked  
away nervously. I wasn't good at eye contact.

I looked at him, who was still looking at me, and looked away just like  
the red haired girl did. I turned my head to look at the sea and ran my  
fingers through my hair. I looked back down to find all of them staring at me,  
except for Blondie. I blushed and bit my lip. Fabrizio motioned me to come see  
them. I opened my mouth as if to speak to him, but nothing came out. I took  
a deep breath and walked down the staircase. I shook my nervousness off as  
I breathed again.

"Benvenuto!" Fabrizio announced as I came closer. I smiled, but this  
time it wasn't forced.

"Hi Fabrizio," I said waving slightly. I walked over and stood in front of  
him, a foot or two from the blonde girl. She scanned me quickly and smiled.

"Who might you be?" She asked me with laughter in her eyes. My jealousy  
from before melted away as I smiled back at her.

"I'm Giulia Uccellino, nice to meet you." I said shaking her hand.

"Ellen Hoc- Lahr, Ellen Lahr," she said smirking. That smile…where had  
I seen that smile? I nodded my head and glanced at Blondie.

"Hey Blondie, how are you?" I asked smirking. He didn't respond. I  
looked at the others with my eyebrows drawn together. I pointed to Blondie  
with my thumb.

"Is he okay?" I asked a little worried. The excited young man I saw  
before was now in deep thought. At least he was smiling.

"Ha, we were wondering the same thing. We think he's in a trance," Ellen  
said laughing.

"I'm trying to tell him it won't work out," the, apparently, Irish  
bowler hat man said. "Gals like that don't go for men like us."

I shook my head.

"I don't believe that," I said crossing my arms.

"Well then," he said raising an eyebrow and smirking, "what do you  
believe?"

I looked out into the ocean and took a deep breath. I noticed Ellen  
exchange a puzzled look with Fabrizio.

"I believe," I said still looking out into the ocean, "that anything is  
capable of happening. Especially with love, whether it's for better, or for  
worse. I believe that no matter what class you're in, or where you're from,  
love will guide your heart where it belongs."

I faced them again and they all stared at me smiling, even Blondie. I  
blushed.

"Sorry, sometimes I get carried away," I said looking down and  
scratching my head.

"No," said Charming. "That was a beautiful thing to say," He smiled  
slightly and my heart tripped.

"Thanks," I said with a smile. I blinked hard and turned to the bowler  
hat man.

"I never got your name," I said changing the subject.

"Oh, sorry, I'm Tommy Ryan."

"Pleasure," I said smiling.

"That's Jack, by the way," Ellen cut in motioning toward Blondie. I  
nodded once.

"I see, that's a nice name," I looked at Jack and saw he was gazing out  
at the ocean again. I rolled my eyes and laughed. "And you are?"

"Declan Taylor," said Charming, shaking my hand. His voice had a familiar  
sound.

"Are you Australian?" He nodded. "Wow, so, you lived there?" I asked,  
fearing sarcasm. He just smirked.

"Yes, I lived there until I was about twelve, and now my dad's taking  
me }round the world. We thought a trip on the Unsinkable Titanic would  
suffice." I nodded with a smile. I had only seen one Australian in my life  
before this, and he was our chauffeur to Southampton just yesterday.

"So does anyone know who the redhead and the man up there were?" I  
asked pointing to the deck.

"We were just talking about them as well. The man is, unfortunately, my  
cousin Caledon Hockley; Cal. And the young lady is his fiancée, Rose DeWitt  
Bukater," Ellen said leaning against the railing.

"That makes sense!" I said studying Ellen's face. She looked puzzled.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Cal quite literally ran into me on his way to retrieve Rose. When he  
came back I scowled at him and he smirked at me," I pointed to Ellen.

"When you smirked earlier, you sort of looked like him," I could see she  
was not taking that comment well.

"Although, that smile looks better on you," I said trying to remedy  
what I had said. She chuckled and thanked me.

"Well," Ellen said standing straight, "I think I'm going to head off. See  
you guys later." She waved and left.

"So, Mr. Ryan-" He put his hand up.

"Please, call me Tommy," he said.

"All right then, so, Tommy," I said imitating a British woman as I said  
his name. "I noticed you couldn't take your eyes off of her," I motioned to  
where Ellen was walking. His cheeks turned red.

"W-well, yes, b-but," he stuttered. I laughed.

"It's all right; Cupid doesn't have to choose one victim at a time," I said  
nodding my head towards Jack. I came over and sat by Fabrizio, who laughed,  
but Declan remained silent, just staring at me.

"Apparently, he can hit up to three," I said winking at him. I meant  
me, but Tommy thought I meant Declan.

"Oh-ho-ho," he chuckled nudging Declan's arm. "Do we like Miss Giulia  
now?" That last comment seemed to shake Declan from his trance. He smiled  
and sat in between us, putting his left arm around me.

"Oh, you know it man," he said winking at me. I blushed and smiled.

"So, what brings you to Titanic?" Declan asked.

"Well, my sister and I are moving to Albany, and this was the best way  
to get there," I said summing it up as best as I could.

"Seems like we've got a plan, but Tommy said he doesn't really know what  
he's going to do."

"Neither do Jack and I," Fabrizio said.

"Hmm?" Jack said finally turning.

"Nice timing, ragazzo," Fabrizio ruffled his hair. That was the first time  
I saw Jack laugh since I've been on the ship. He was very cute; I wish he did  
that more often.

"Well," Declan said getting up, "I think I'm going to walk around. Would  
you care to join me Miss?" He extended a hand towards me. I glanced from his  
eyes, to his hand, and back again, not sure what just happened. I finally took  
hold of reality.

"Sure, I'd like that," I took his hand.

"You be safe now, a'right?" Jack called after us. Declan and I exchanged  
a look, chuckled, and kept going.

We walked for quite some time, talking about everything we knew and  
had in common, which, matter-of-factly, was quite a lot.

The sun was starting to set, and it was beautiful. I lounged in a deck  
chair while Declan stared out into the sea. I closed my eyes and envisioned him  
in front of me as if my eyes were open.

I must've fallen asleep, because when I opened my eyes, I was still lying  
in the lounge chair, but it was dark. The starry sky loomed over me. A coat  
was lying on top of me. Thank goodness; it was very cold. I sat up and  
stretched. A note fell from the jacket. It said:

Julia,

Sorry I had to leave, but my dad needed me. I  
gave you my coat so you would be warm. My room  
is E-23. Come see me in the morning if you like.  
Stay warm.

-Declan

I smiled at how he misspelled my name. As I pulled off his coat, I  
realized how cold it really was. A shiver ran its way up my arms and down to  
my feet. I pulled his coat on over my shrug and put his note in the pocket as

I stood. Yawning and stretching once more, I made my way along the deck  
towards the stern.

I wandered over to a starboard railing and looked out into the ocean.  
It was dark and teasing, yet bright and fun. I smiled as the hypnotic waves  
put me in a trance.

A sudden scream shook me to my senses.

HELP! It cried.

HELP PLEASE! HELP! PLEASE! It repeated.

I ran up the staircase and to the southern end of the second class  
deck.

As I reached the rail I looked down to find Jack looming over Rose.

"What the he-" A group of officers suddenly appeared. The middle one  
pointed to Jack.

"You stand back! And don't move an inch!" He screamed. "Fetch the  
master-at-arms!"

One of them ran off. Another shoved Jack out of the way and he and  
the other took Rose and sat her down. Jack looked up to see me staring  
fearfully at him. A worried expression came across his face, and he wiggled his  
finger for me to see him.

I quickly ran down the staircase and to Jack.

"Jack!" I whisper-yelled. "What happened?! What were you doing?!" I  
was here and there flailing my arms as discreetly as I could. He grabbed me by  
the shoulders and walked me over closer to the anchor on the ground. One of  
the officers noticed us.

"You! Don't go anywhere!" Jack sighed and turned back to me. His face  
was solemn but his voice wasn't shaken.

"Giulia, you have to believe me. I did nothing to hurt Rose. I would never  
hurt Rose. You know that, right? She was going to jump off. She was going  
to kill herself-"

"What?!" I almost screamed. "Why would she do such a thing?! I mean,  
I know Cal's not the nicest guy in the world, but why?!" I almost cried,  
which surprised me. Why did I care so much about her? I didn't know her.

"I don't know, but I had to do something! When I convinced her to  
come over the rail, her shoe slipped and she was dangling off the side of the  
ship. I was the only thing standing in her way of falling. I tried to pull her up  
again and she slipped again. I don't know what's wrong with her shoes, but  
they sure as hell didn't help!" At least he still had a sense of humor.

"I finally pulled her over, and she was lying on the ground, and I was  
leaning over her trying to see if she was all right. And then the cops came.  
Come on, you believe me don't you?" He looked a tad concerned.

"Don't worry Jack, I believe you. I wouldn't think you would…" I  
shuddered at the thought. I looked over his shoulder to find the officers  
watching five men arrive. One of them was Cal.

"Oh no," I groaned. I pointed to them. Jack looked back.

"Great, I'm about to get my ass kicked," he sighed and grimaced.

"I'll be over here, call if you need me," He nodded and I walked casually  
over to the far left railing as he walked back over to the officers.

"This is completely unacceptable!" I heard Cal yell as the master-at-  
arms hand-cuffed Jack.

"What made you think you could put your hands on my fiancée!" Cal  
grabbed Jack's collar, talking about Rose as if she were his property.

Jack looked over at Rose.

"Look at me you filth!" He screamed.

"Cal," Rose warned.

"What do you think you were doing?!" He was getting angrier.

"Cal, stop!" Rose got up. "It was an accident!" She pushed him aside,  
and he looked at her in disbelief.

"An accident?" He repeated, as if he didn't hear her correctly.

"It was, stupid really," She laughed as she said it.

"I was leaning over, and I slipped," Jack gave her a hard, confused look.  
He looked at Cal, then back at her. Rose glanced at Jack to follow along.

"I was leaning far over to the, uh... uh... uh… the, uh… uh…" She spun her  
finger in a little circle.

"Propellers?"

"Propellers, and I slipped! And I would've gone overboard but Mr.  
Dawson here saved me, and almost went over himself." She was a very smart  
girl.

"You wanted to see… She wanted to see the propellers!" Cal laughed  
nervously.

"Like I said, }women and machinery do not mix.'" One of the men said.

The master-at-arms roughly turned Jack to face him.

"Was that the way of it?"

Jack looked at Rose. She mouthed the word please. He swallowed.

"Yeah, yeah that was pretty much it," He seemed to relax.

"Well, the boy's a hero then! Good for you, son. Well done," The man from  
before said. He was carrying a glass.

"So it's all's well and back to our brandy, eh?" It had been filled with  
brandy.

The master-at-arms took the shackles off of Jack's wrists and walked  
away. Cal tried to warm Rose up and started to walk away as well.

"Uh, perhaps a little something for the boy?" The man with the brandy  
motioned towards Jack. Rose looked at Cal.

"Of course. Mr. Lovejoy, I think a twenty should do it," Cal nodded and  
eagerly started to leave. One of the men started getting out his wallet. Rose  
was not happy with the decision. She scoffed.

"Is that the going rate for saving the woman you love?" Cal looked at  
Rose and smirked.

"Rose is displeased. What to do?" he asked himself.

"I know," he walked over to Jack.

"Perhaps you could join us for dinner tomorrow evening, to regale our  
group with… your heroic tale," He waited for Jack's reply.

"Sure," he said after a moment, "count me in."

"Good. Settled then." Cal turned and mumbled something to the man  
with the brandy glass.

Jack whistled towards Mr. Lovejoy.

"Can I, uh… bum a smoke?" Lovejoy held out his cigarette case towards  
Jack, who took two: one in his mouth, the other behind his ear.

Lovejoy closed the case and look at Jack's shoes.

"You'll want to tie those," he said pointing to them. "It's interesting;  
the young lady slips so suddenly and you still had time to remove your jacket  
and your shoes," he smirked and turned to leave. Jack played with the  
cigarette in his mouth until I walked over to greet him once more.

"Funny," I said as I approached him, "Mr., Lovejoy, is it? He doesn't  
seem to be very loving or joyful at all." He chuckled and lit up. He offered me his  
arm and we walked along the deck towards the bow.

"She's a pretty good liar," I said.

"Hmm?" He asked taking a drag.

"Rose, she was doing a good job back there."

"Oh, yeah, I guess so," he smiled at the thought of her. I stopped  
walking and stood right in front of him.

"You love her, don't you?" I said with a sweet smile. He looked at me  
taken aback a bit. He finally laughed and I ruffled his mop of hair. I took his  
arm again and we continued walking.

"Are you planning on meeting her again?"

"I hope so," he smiled at me.

"Yeah, I hope I see Declan soon as well," I bit my lip as soon as I  
realized what I had said.

"Oh-ho-ho! Is that what was going on earlier? I looked back and you  
were both there, the next minute, you were gone!" He playfully pushed me to  
the side.

"Well, if you weren't so caught up in thinking of your girlfriend, you  
would've noticed!" I pushed him back. He blushed, and we kept walking.

"It was that noticeable, huh?" he asked. I nodded and smiled.

"Tommy, Fabrizio, and I were joking about how you and Tommy were  
both victims of Cupid."

"How was Tommy affected by cupid's almighty power?" I couldn't tell if  
he was being sarcastic.

"Well, he wouldn't take his eyes off of that Ellen girl. When she left, I  
pointed it out, and he blushed! I caught him red-handed!" I laughed at the  
thought of his hard face, suddenly turning boyish.

"Red-faced more like it," Jack mumbled and smiled at himself. So he does  
smile.

"What were you doing out here so late?" He asked me after a moment of  
silence.

"I was watching the sunset with Declan, and I fell asleep on a lounge  
chair," I looked down, oddly embarrassed.

"I was watching the stars until Rose came running along, crying," Jack  
looked down. I looked at him worried.

"She was crying? Why was she crying?" I stopped walking.

"I don't really, know, I just heard her run past me, so I stood up.  
When I realized it was her, I got up to see where she was going. She climbed

onto the outside of the rail and started to lean forward. I was surprised  
that she didn't let go of fright when I told her not to let go," He seemed  
pretty cool about it now.

I sighed and put my head on his shoulder.

"I'm tired," I mumbled. I heard a breathy laugh.

"It is pretty late; do you want me to walk you back to your room?"

"Yeah, thanks Jack. You're a good friend for knowing someone a short  
while," I looked up at him and he smiled.  
"It's what I do."


	2. Chapters 3-6

Chapter 3

When I woke the next morning, I was snug in my bed. Immediately when I opened my eyes, I remembered the previous night. I sat up and stretched my arms, closing my eyes. When I opened them, there was a knock at the door. I pulled on my robe and answered.

"I'm starting to think I've got my own personal wake-up call." I smiled and let her in.

"A 'wake-up call'?"

"Oh, at some hotels, the manager rings you if you want to be woken at a certain time." She nodded, amused.

"I was going to ask you who you were with last night!" She raised an eyebrow.

"Oh," I chuckled, "that. Well, long story short, I fell asleep on deck and a friend brought me back here."

"Huh, I bumped into him on my way over here this morning." She was wearing the clothes she had on yesterday.

"You didn't get back here until this morning?" She beamed.

"I spent the night with the man of my dreams!" Helga spun in a little circle. I giggled.

"And who might he be? I might know him."

"His name is Fabrizio-" I let out a high sound of delight.

"Fabrizio!? Good god, I can't believe it! I've met him! He's very nice, and funny, you two could make a great couple." I beamed this time at the thought of them together.

"Well, I have to go. I'm meeting up with him again!" Helga turned and skipped out the door. I smiled and fell back on to my pillow the same moment there was a knock on my door. My face flushed as I shot up.

"Um, Giulia? It's Harry… are you decent?" I jumped onto the floor, and fell over from the momentum. "What was that crash? Giulia, are you okay?" He sounded worried.

"I'm fine, I'm just not dressed yet," I threw off my nightgown and darted toward my suitcase

"All right, I'll be waiting out here," His heels clicked a few times, and I heard the creak of the wall as he leaned against it. Tearing through my suitcase, I found my mother's peach gown and slipped it on. I fixed the straps and tied the bow and shoved my belongings under the berth to make the place look nice.

I smoothed my hair and opened the door. When I saw no one I looked out the doorway and gazed left down the hallway.

"Over here," a voice from my right startled me. I jumped. Harry laughed softly. "Sorry to have frightened you miss, but I have a note from a mister Declan Taylor." My face lit up and I grabbed the note a little too quickly, making Harry laugh.

"Well, I'll be off, se-"

"Wait!" I cut him off as I stared at the note.

"What's the problem?" I look up and his eyebrows were drawn together, just like mine. The note says **Bow**.

"I don't get it, what is it supposed to mean?" He shook his head as he chuckled.

"I'm so sorry, I forgot. He also wanted you to know '6:30'." I just looked at him. He laughed once again. "Don't ask me! I'm just the messenger." He tipped his hat and left.

I stood there in the hallway, note in my right hand, staring down the direction he left, even after he was long gone. _Bow, 6:30__…_ repeated in my head over and over. Then, it hit me, knocking me on my feet.

"Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry miss lady! Please don't tell my mum!" I opened my eyes to find a little boy standing over me, his face scared. I stood up and rubbed my head.

"What happened?" I hadn't seen what hit me.

"Well, I was trying to get my top to work, and I threw it too hard. I'm real sorry, Ma'am, please don't tell my mummy!" I grabbed the top to find it broken. I stared at it with sorrow. It was a cute little top. When I stood up and looked at the boy, I saw he was starting to cry.

"Hey! Hey, don't cry! I won't tell her I promise, hon," I knelt down so my face was level with his. I wiped away a tear. He sniffed. "And don't worry about your top, I'll get it fixed, I promise! Hmm?" I smiled at him and he smiled right back at me. He gave me the string and wiped his eyes.

"You pinky promise?" He stuck out his pinky. I giggled.

"I pinky promise," I wrapped my pinky around his, and then gave him a little hug. "What's your name? Once I get it fixed I'll come and look for you."

"Joshua Film," He smiled as he waved good-bye. I went into my room and set the top on my dresser. I gasped as I realized I dropped Declan's note. I went into the hallway to retrieve it, and put it next to the top. As I looked the note over one more time, it hit me. Not the top, but what he had meant. He wants to meet me at the bow at 6:30. I laughed at myself for not figuring that out earlier. When my stomach growled, I glance at the wall clock. 9:13 A.M. Breathing a sigh of relief that I wasn't late, I walked out the door towards the dining room.

Chapter 4

I left the dining room and realized that I hadn't seen Jack anywhere. When I finally ran up on deck, it took me most of the afternoon to find him. Of course, I ran into Ellen and Tommy, Harry, and even Cal. When I saw Jack, he was sitting on a deck chair next to . . . Rose! They were talking! She was looking in a brown book with what looked like drawings. When he turned and pointed something out to her, I assumed they were his drawings. I leaned against the railing and watched them talk. When Jack saw me he shot me a warning glance. I giggled and nodded. When he smiled, Rose turned to see what he was smiling at.

When I saw her look up at him, before she turned to me, I immediately grabbed the nearest arm in sight.

"Please pretend you're talking to me, I'm hiding from someone...well, sort of." He was a 22, maybe 23 year-old English man, and played along nicely. When Rose looked away, I heaved a sigh of relief.

"Thank you _so_ much! I really owe you one! What's your name?"

"James Callaghan. And you can forget about it. I'm always willing to help a beautiful young lady such as you for free," He winked at me and left. My face flushed as I watched him leave. I shook my head and started to walk. _I've got one, I don't need another_, I thought to myself happily.

As I strode down the deck, I ran into Fabrizio and Helga.

"_Ciao_!" I exclaimed to the both of them, smiling vigorously.

They both replied. I noticed they were holding hands. The sight made me melt. They were very cute together.

"Would any of you know what time it is?" I asked crossing my fingers, toes, practically anything crossable so they would.

"Yes, actually, we just came from that very big staircase. I believe it was 5:44 about ten minutes ago," Helga said as Fabrizio stroked the back of her hand. I gasped and my eyes went wide.

"Oh my goodness! I'm going to be late!" I looked around frantically, as if it would help.

"Late? For what?" Fabrizio asked.

"Declan asked me to meet him at the bow at 6:30," I shook my head.

"Oh! That reminds me!" Fabrizio let go of Helga's hand to take something out of his hat. When he removed his hand, Helga's bright expression dimmed a little. Fabrizio gave me a note.

"I kept it in my hat so I wouldn't forget, but alas, I did!" Fabrizio shook his head at himself.

"We'd better get going, see you later Giulia," Helga said almost in a whisper. We exchanged good-byes, and I walked over to the rail. I propped up my elbows on the smooth wood and started unraveling the paper. It was in Declan's elegant scrawl.

**Dress Nicely.**

I grinned from ear-to-ear and ran to my room.

Chapter 5

I decided to go with an emerald dress. I was a little tired of the soft colors, so I went with something dark. The jewelry box chimed as I opened the lid. I pulled out my father's locket, and smiled. The silver heart shone in the dim light. I undid the clasp and put it around my neck. It fit perfectly in between my collar bone and the neckline of my dress. I finished my outfit, and grinned in the mirror. I looked down at my feet and gasped at the bare skin.

I had pumps, but they were off-white, and he's already seen my sandals. My eyes lit up and I ran to my sister's room. I rapped twelve times before she answered.

"I'm here; I'm here, what's the rush?" She paused suddenly, looked me over, and gave out a long, low whistle.

"What are you all dressed up for?" She smiled and her eyes went wide. I grabbed her hand, ran inside, and shut the door. "You met a boy!" She took in a sharp breath.

"Okay, yes, I have a date, but-" she squealed and clapped her hands. Sometimes she acted like she _was_ fourteen. I rolled my eyes and laughed. "I have a date," I repeated, "but I need to borrow your white pumps; the ones that go with this dress." By the time I was done talking, she was already tearing through her suitcase full of shoes, throwing them across the room.

"Here they are, lovely," She dusted off the non-existent dust and handed them to me.

"Thank you so much," I slipped them on over my feet. Luckily, we had the same shoe size. I looked up and she had her eyebrows raised.

"Black pantyhose? I thought you hated them!" I laughed and lifted my dress about half a foot over my knees.

"I cut the waist part off and tied them to my leg with ribbon," I smiled at myself for thinking it. She nodded in approval.

"Nice. Uh, when exactly is this date of yours?"

"Six-thirty, why?" I asked fluffing my hair.

"Well, you'd better hurry, it's 6:20!" She said looking up from her pocket watch.

"Oh my! Thank you for the pumps, I'll see you later!" I said kissing her cheek and fleeing out the door.

"You're welcome! Have fun!" She called after me.

I quickly walked to the bow. _Please don't be angry, please don't be angry._ I shook my head at the thought and kept walking. I was almost there, when two waiters ran into me from around the corner.

"Oh, excuse me; I wasn't look-wait, Tommy?" I looked up into the face of the man I ran into.

"It's Mr. Ryan to you tonight," He said and winked at me. He was still wearing his bowler hat. I laughed.

"And I'm Ms. Lahr to you as well," I glanced at the other face and recognized Ellen. She was wearing a suit and had her hair slicked back. I gawked at her.

"Ellen? I thought you were, good Lord! I hardly recognized you!" She laughed and offered me her arm, but I didn't take it. I was busy noticing her jaw. The entire left side was purple and slightly swollen.

"_Che diavolo!_ What happened to you?" I raised my left hand and cradled the right side of her face, but was reluctant to touch the bruised left side. Her eyes fell and she sighed.

"Cal got mad and hit me yesterday, it's nothing, really," Her eyes didn't match her words, but I left it at that.

"I never did like him," I pretended to cock a handgun and she laughed. She offered me her arm once more, as so did Tommy. To preserve the mood, I changed the subject.

"Okay, so what is all this about? And where'd you guys get those suits?" Tommy patted my hand.

"All will be answered shortly, just hang in there. Now, close your eyes until we say so," I smirked and closed my eyes. We walked for a short time before Tommy and Ellen stopped.

"You can open them now," Ellen said patting my shoulder. They were facing me. They both pretended to open doors and parted so I could walk forward. I giggled and started walking. Tommy stopped me.

"May I escort you to your table?" He had a face so fake it was impossible not to laugh.

"Yes sir," He put his finger to my chin and lifted it a little.

"You look lovely, Giulia," I blushed and looked in the other direction. "Here we are," Harry's voice startled me. I looked ahead to see Declan.

"You look wonderful," Declan said as we sat down. I felt my face tighten. _Oh no__…_ I thought to myself. A few years ago, I noticed when a boy I had a crush on talked to me, my heart would race, and the blood would rush to my face, making it feel tight and hot. It was rather annoying. Tommy and Ellen brought us some bread and some champagne.

"How did you do all this? I mean I thought you had a bit of money to travel around the world, but, you've outdone yourself!" I smiled as I sipped my drink. It didn't taste as I imagined, but it was good. After all, I had never had it before.

"Well, I am in first class you know," He winked at me.

"Actually I didn't. Money can get you a table and candles, and champagne on the deck?"

"Well, your friend Harry got me the table and the food, and Tommy swiped a candles," he chuckled and placed his hand upon mine. I stared at the his hand tracing the veins on the back of mine. I didn't notice Tommy come up until he put my salad in front of me.

"Thank you Mr. Ryan," I said in my fake British accent. He laughed, tipped his hat, then left.

"Well, dig in," Declan said as his picked up his fork. We, again, talked about everything. What our old houses looked like, how expensive the ship looked, everything, and anything. By the time we had finished our dinner, the sun was down. Tommy and Ellen had left for the third class party going on, but Harry came by to clean everything up. I felt bad leaving him with everything, but he insisted it was okay.

Declan led me back to my room.

"I bet you don't want to go to a wild party dressed that nicely. I'm going to go to my room to change out of this suit."

"Aw, I thought you looked handsome!" He smiled, kissed my hand and backed up.

I took a step into my room, but he grabbed my hand. I turned around and he was right there. His face inches from mine. He has brown eyes. Dark, like his hair. I waited, holding my breath. His lips parted as if he was going to say something, but he just slowly backed up, smirked and walked away

"Well, I'll see you at the party then," He said as he walked. I watched him walk down the hall until he turned the corner. Even after he left, I stared at the corner.

"What the hell?" I mumbled. I rolled my eyes and snickered as I went in my room.

Chapter 6

I took off my jewelry, put on a comfortable brown dress, and fled out the door.

I could hear the music from the party all the way down the hall. The closer I got, the wider my smile became.

There were many people dancing. Some were sitting and drinking and talking, a few men were arm wrestling, and I saw a couple kissing in the corner. I wound my way through the crowds, hoping to find someone I knew.

"Giulia!" I turned to the left to find Fabrizio, Tommy, and Ellen. I smiled and waved.

Fabrizio twirled me, and Ellen gave me a hug. Tommy was in the middle of an arm wrestling match, but he did say hello.

"Welcome to third class, Judith!" He glanced at me and winked.

"Judith?" I asked Ellen and Fabrizio, but they both shrugged.

"It's a nickname for Giulia," I heard a familiar voice say behind me. Before I could turn, he put his hands over my eyes and said, "Guess who?" I laughed.

"You're Jesus." He laughed. "Let's see, um, Socrates?" This time I heard Ellen laugh as well.

"I'll give you one more try," I heard him tease.

"Okay, let's try…Mr. Taylor?" I put my hands on top of his to try to take them off. He let go and spun me around so I could face him.

"Bingo," He winked at me and kissed me. Better late than never. I turned back around, and Fabrizio was gone. Tommy had gotten up to dance with Ellen. I looked around and saw Fabrizio jumping around with Helga. I laughed and turned back to face Declan. He nodded his head towards the dance floor. I scrunched my eyebrows together.

"I'm not much of a dancer," He grabbed my waist anyway.

"Neither are half the people here, c'mon, it'll be fun!" He took my left hand and grinned. I rolled my eyes and nodded. He bolted to his left and I, surprisingly, followed along. It was exhilarating! I laughed and squealed a little more than necessary, but all in all, I had a great time. We finally stopped when the song ended. I clapped with everyone and laughed yet again.

"What do you want to do now?" He asked me, still holding my waist.

"Uhh," I looked around to see if maybe Jack was here. To my happy surprise, he was! He was here with Rose too! They were talking to Tommy and Ellen. I squealed with delight and dragged Declan over to see them.

"Jack, Rose, hi!" I exclaimed as I approached them. Jack replied, but Rose looked lost.

"Oh, excuse me; I forgot we hadn't met yet. I'm Giulia _Uccellino_, Jack and I are friends," Declan cleared his throat and looked around with a silly smirk on his face. I snickered.

"Sorry, this is my… Declan. Declan Taylor," Jack's face had a sarcastic light.

"Ah, so he's yours, huh? We were all going to go sit over there, you want to join us?" Rose started to relax. I looked at Declan and he winked at me.

"Sure! That'll be great!" We walked a little way and found a table. Tommy left to go get us some beers. I tried some—not bad—and noticed Tommy gave one to an unfamiliar man. Jack went to dance with a little girl named Cora, so I asked Declan who he was.

"I think he's Jack's roommate, he only speaks Swedish, so you probably wouldn't want to talk to him,"

The roommate looked at me so I smiled and waved. He nodded his head and turned to Rose.

"_Talla frikken svenska_?" He asked her.

"What?" She asked while clapping to the music.

"_Talla frikken svenska_?" He cupped his hand over his mouth to get the words out better.

"I can't understand you!" She took one of the beers Tommy had brought and kept watching Jack and Cora dance. When the song ended, Jack decided to dance with Rose. She didn't want to at first, but when they started dancing, she was laughing, or barking rather.

Her squeals of delight were amusing, and they made Tommy laugh. Jack and Rose headed toward the stage where Fabrizio and Helga were recently dancing. As Jack and Rose were up there, Tommy decided to arm wrestle again. Ellen looked at me, rolled her eyes playfully, and followed along.

Cora sat where Rose was recently sitting, and huffed.

"What's the matter? Aren't you having a good time?" I tickled her face with a strand of her hair.

"Jack's dancing with the red haired girl," She frowned.

"Aw, who needs Jack, huh?" Declan said leaning across the table towards her. "We can have ten times more fun than him, eh?" She smiled. "Come on," He got up and started dancing with her. When he stopped and looked at me, Cora got mad again.

"No no, all three of us can dance!" He smiled and waved me over. I joined hands with them and we danced in a little circle. Declan picked her up and spun her around. When her parents came to get her, she was sad to leave.

"Don't worry; we'll see each other again, yeah?" I gave her a hug and Declan gave her a kiss on top of her head. She smiled, waved, and skipped off.

"That was really sweet of you to do that," I looked up into his eyes and he kissed my head. I heard a few loud shouts. When I looked in that direction, I saw Tommy had just been beaten. Rose started to talk to everyone. My mouth dropped open when she took Tommy's cigarette.

"Come on, this looks like it'll be good." I grabbed Declan's hand and we ran over to the crowd.

"Hold this for me, Jack. Hold it up!" Rose said when we came by. She put her arms in front of her like she was about to do ballet. I saw her rise and her face distort in pain. Everyone looked down and saw her standing on the very tip of her toes.

"Ow!" She screamed and fell into Jack's arms. Everyone laughed and clapped.

"Are you okay?" Jack asked her.

"I haven't done that in years!" She laughed.

I turned to my right to look at Declan, and Mr. Lovejoy caught my eye. He looked really mad when he saw Rose with Jack. I grabbed Declan's hand. He looked down and saw me and smiled. I nodded towards Lovejoy. He followed my gaze and drew is eyebrows together, but shrugged him off when he left.

"Come on!" He yelled. People were forming a dance line. Declan grabbed Jack's hand and tugged me along. We hopped and skipped until the song ended.

"I'm pretty tired, how about you?" He asked me. I nodded as I tried to catch my breath.

"You wanna leave?" he asked squeezing my hand, trying to convince me.

"Sure!" I brushed a curl out of my face and looked up at him. He smiled and pulled me in the direction of his room.


	3. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

I awoke the next morning well rested. Although I was sad to find that Declan was gone.

"Declan?" My voice was tight and quiet. I cleared my throat and called for him again. He didn't answer. I sat up and stretched. It was a big room, so he could be hiding…if so, then why hadn't he answered? Puzzled still, I climbed down the ladder, put my dress on from the night before on, and headed out the door, when a note caught my eye.

_What is it with this boy and notes?_

Giulia,

** Since there was only about an hour left for breakfast, I went. Now, don't get mad, I'll sneak you some food when I come back. If it's not over yet, please come and join me!**

** -Declan**

I smiled went on my way to my room.

I knocked on Helga's door to see how she was, but there was no answer. I shrugged it off and went into my room. I decided to wear the ocean blue gown my mother handed down to me, and the things that went with it. I liked this outfit because the color in the dress mimicked my eyes. I slipped on my pumps and skipped right out the door to breakfast.

On my way there I accidentally bumped into a man about 38 or so.

"Excuse me sir, I wasn't watching where I was going, I apologize," I nodded my head at the other men who came out with him. I was about to leave, when a man in his early twenties stopped me.

"Have I seen you around somewhere?" He asked me. He had sort of a half-smile, his way of showing his interest. That smile…of course! It was Cal! I blushed at the thought of his remembering our encounter.

"Yes, we met the other day up on deck. I'm sorry, I didn't give you the politest expression as you walked by.

"Oh no, it's fine. What's your name?"

"Giulia _Uccellino_."

"Ah, gentlemen, this is Giulia, we ran into each other the other day," I nodded once more. The man I ran into came up and shook my hand.

"I'm Thomas Andrews, how do you do?"

"Fine thank you. I thought I recognized you…you're the carpenter aren't you?" His eyes lit up at my recognition.

"Yes, how did you know?" His eyes also had a glint of curiosity.

"My mother and I went to America on the _Olympic_ to look for a house. We came back to pack our things and decided to go on the newest ship to compare. You did a beautiful job, Mr. Andrews, this ship is absolutely incredible," He smiled humbly at my remark.

"Thank you very much Giulia that was very kind of you."

"You're very welcome. Well, excuse me, but I'm actually on my way to go somewhere, it was nice meeting you all," I nodded my head for the thousandth time and started to leave. Mr. Lovejoy gave me a rather long smile as I passed him. To be polite I asked him who he was, since we hadn't officially met.

"Spicer Lovejoy, I'm Mr. Hockley's assistant, I suppose you could say,"

"Pleasure, I'm Giulia," I smiled and when he followed Cal and the others, I continued on my way.

I looked around when I arrived, and found Declan and Tommy. I hadn't eaten in the third class dining room before, but I acted with Declan as if we were part of the group.

"I'm not late am I?" I asked sitting down.

"Nah, you've a good twenty or so minutes," Tommy said finishing off what he was eating. I breathed a sigh of relief and went to get my food.

When I was finished, Declan and I went up to the deck to look at the ocean. He was reluctant at first, but I convinced him.

"I don't know why, but it's just so beautiful to me!" I said putting my head on his shoulder.

When we arrived at the railing, we didn't talk for a while. We just gazed out into the ocean blue. Declan went to go sit on a deck chair, but I remained, gazing at the ocean, the sky, then occasionally at the passengers. I saw Jack among the people and called after him. He looked up sharply at the call of his name, and forced a smile. Even from afar, his eyes showed no happiness. When he was standing next to me, my face was twisted with worry.

"What's the matter?" I asked him taking one of his hands. He sighed and looked at the floor.

"Jack," I said with a voice like my mother used when I refused to answer her, "what's the matter?" I repeated, but softer.

"It's Rose," he said and sighed again.

"What happened? Did she hurt you?" The girl I grew so fondly of last night easily got under my skin.

"No, never, it's just…I tried to see her during the Sunday services, but Mr. Lovejoy refused to let me see her! I tried to tell her how special she was to me, but that bastard ruined everything!" He looked angered now. I raised my eyebrows in shock.

"Mr. Lovejoy? You mean Cal's assistant?" I said stupidly.

"Yeah, you know him?" His expression turned from anger to curiosity.

"Yeah, that 'bastard' as you so call him, was very nice to me. Maybe it's just because he fancies me," Jack drew back in disgust.

"But the guy's at least twenty years older than you!" He shook his head, refusing to listen to what I said. I nodded my head.

"Yeah I wasn't overjoyed when I figured that out as well," After a moment of silence, Jack wound the conversation back to Rose.

"What do I do? How do I see her?" Jack seemed small right then. Like a little boy who has lost his mother and doesn't know how to find her. I took a deep breath.

"I'll go talk to her," Jack looked at me in surprise.

"Really?" I nodded with certainty.

"Yes. If you can't come to her. Then she'll have to come to you," I straightened up and started to head towards the first class dining room, but Jack stopped me.

"But, how?" He asked bewildered. I looked at the floor.

"That I'm not sure of, but I will get back to you," I told Declan I'd be back in about an hour, and I headed off. I quickly thought of a plan on my way to the area similar to a church. Luckily for me, the Sunday services were just ending. I stood off to the side and put my hands in the pockets of my overcoat. There was something in the bottom of the right pocket. It was the diamond necklace I had lost! Ecstatic, I quickly put it on before I caught sight of Rose, Cal, Lovejoy, and another older woman with them. I fluffed my hair and walked formally towards them.

"Excuse me, Mr. Hockley?" Cal whipped around and smiled at the sight of me.

"Giulia! How wonderful to see you! Rose, Ruth, this is Giulia Uccellino, we ran into each other a couple of times. Giulia, this is Rose, my fiancée, and this is Ruth, Rose's mother," I smiled sweetly and introduced myself. I thought quickly to get the approval of the mother, so I complimented her.

"My, those earrings are beautiful! Wherever did you get them?" I wasn't lying, her earrings were very nice. Her eyes lit up. Bull's-eye.

"How very nice of you! I actually got them at a shop in London. It's small, but the things there are just darling. You must have gotten that gorgeous necklace there, am I right?" She had a soft, but stern voice. I smiled once again.

"It's actually a gift from my grandmother. She dressed similarly to you, but your clothes are far more tasteful." She beamed.

"Rose, aren't you a beautiful young thing? May I speak with you for a moment?" I asked, changing the subject. She seemed surprised. It was the most emotion I'd seen on her face when she was sober. She turned towards Cal for permission. He nodded and we walked over to the side of the room together.

"I was just wondering what you were doing today," It was random, but she went along.

"Mother, Cal, and I are being given a tour of the ship by Mr. Andrews, why?" She creased her forehead slightly.

"Uhh…" I thought frantically for a solution. Where would they meet? The deck? No, it has to be a room, but a public room. The gymnasium! "I'm going to be strolling around, and I wanted to be able to see you! I'm pretty much going to be giving myself a tour. I'll be going to the wheels, the engine room, even the gymnasium! Will you be going anywhere near there?"

"Probably, hold on. Mr. Andrews? Will the tour include going near the steering wheels, the engine room, and the gymnasium?"

"Yes, we will," He smiled. Rose turned to me and raised her eyebrows.

"Okay, thank you very much," I smiled. She seemed slightly confused, but nodded and returned to her mother and Cal.

"I'll be seeing you then!" I said to them all before they left. When they left I walked triumphantly to where I had met Jack.

"Jack!" I managed to get out in between my panting.

"Giulia! Did you see her? Can we meet?" He was much fuller of energy than an hour ago.

"Not officially. You'll have to sneak her away. Go outside the gymnasium door and wait for her there. Try disguising yourself. You can get up there by climbing over the railing, but it's much too high. Go see if Fabrizio and Tommy can lift you up," I had finally caught my breath by the end of my speech. I looked into Jack's face and he was ecstatic.  
"Thank you Giulia! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" He kissed my head then ran off. I sat on a deck chair next to Declan.

"Y'all right there, love?" He put his hand on mine and stroked my skin.

"I think so," I said laughing.

We stayed there for a while, and then decided to walk around the deck. Thanks to my plan, we had to go to the steering wheels, outside the engine room—since we weren't allowed in—and we were on our way to the gymnasium when we ran into the lot, but Rose wasn't there. I knew why, so I didn't say anything. I just nodded and kept going. A little ways back was Rose. She looked as if she was going to cry.

"Oh no," I breathed. I motioned for Declan to move over by the railing.

Rose stopped right in front of me. She let out a sharp breath through her nose.

"Was that why you asked if I was going near the gymnasium?" Her British accent seemed to trail away in her anger. I opened my mouth to explain, but she started before me.

"Do you have any idea how painful that was for me?" I was starting to get a little angry.

"Why does everything have to be about you? Your whole life everything's been about you! You're young and beautiful and rich, and the poor boy was only trying to tell you that he loved you! I'm his friend; I was trying to help him out. You shouldn't be taking this tone with me because something was painful for you," I lowered my tone so Declan wouldn't hear. "Without him you wouldn't even be here," Her eyes widened.

"How did-"

"I was there that night, don't you remember?" I raised an eyebrow as her features softened. She nodded her head.

"I was only trying to do a friend a favor. Please, Rose, give him a chance. I really like you, and I want us to be friends, but for god's sake do something for yourself for a change!" She seemed taken aback for a moment. Her eyes lowered, and I could tell that she knew what I was talking about.

"At least think about it," She nodded her head and we exchanged good-byes.

"That was quite a scene!" Declan said taking my arm. We walked for quite a long time. At one point I saw Ellen. I was about to call after her, but I saw she was with Cal, and Ruth, and Rose. Tommy was near us, so I called out to him.

"Tommy! What is Ellen doing up there? Especially after what he did to her!" Tommy nodded his head.

"He's her cousin, and he would've made a scene if she hadn't," Tommy shrugged and looked back up. Just then Fabrizio ran up.

"Tommy! Declan! Please come with me! I need your help!" He was frantic.

"What is it, mate?" Declan asked.

"I'll tell you on the way, but I need you now!" Tommy looked from Fabrizio to Ellen, and back to Fabrizio again.

"I can't-"

"It's okay Tommy," I cut in. "I'll look after her," I smiled to show him I meant it. "Go! He needs your help!" Tommy smiled.

"Thank you Giulia, you're an angel," He kissed my head and ran off with Fabrizio and Declan. I looked back up to see that Ruth and Rose were gone. My heartbeat quickened when he grabbed her collar. I looked around and found the stairwell to get up to them. I ran up and was behind Spicer, so neither Cal, nor Ellen saw me. I was about to ask what was going on when Ellen punched Cal and ran.

"Lovejoy!" Cal called.

"Right," he started after her. Enraged, I grabbed his left arm.

"Spicer! What are you doing?! Leave her alone!" He didn't listen. Instead he rammed his arm into the left side of my face. I flew backward onto the floor, clutching my left eye where his elbow had struck.

"Giulia!" Cal cried, lifting me up. "What in the world?"

I wrenched myself out of his arms.

"Why did you send him after her?!" I had to close my throbbing eye. He chuckled.

"You saw what she did to me, didn't you?"

"Yes, and I sure saw what you did to her!" His smile disappeared.

"But, did you see who she was with?" I started at him in disgust.

"Why the hell should that matter? I could have a first class ticket, but we got ours too late, and I'm fine with second class! And I find Tommy a nice, caring man. Just because he's in third class doesn't make him any less than you. He's actually a far better man than you by a mile. At least he didn't send someone after a little girl instead of going after her himself, like you, you coward! I thought you were a fine man, but I was wrong. You are despicable!" I walked over and sat on the rail, holding one hand over my eye.

"Coward?" He got close to me.

"What are you-" He took his hands and shoved me backwards. In the process of my fall, my feet flew up and kicked Cal into the wall. I flipped, and grabbed the railing before I could fall any further. I looked around frantically for someone I knew.

Lovejoy soon came over, but I ignored him. With his earlier performance, I no longer trusted him. My arms were starting to give out. Breathing rapidly, I looked around to see if anyone else had come along.

"Giulia!" I heard a distant voice say. I looked to my left and saw Harry waving his arms high over his head.

"Harry! Help!" I shifted my weight so I could see him, and my left hand gave out. I swung to the left and my back hit the wall hard. I looked down, and Harry was under me. My right hand was starting to slip.

"Giulia! Hold on! I'm coming!" Harry left.

"No! Harry! I-I'm slipping!" My right hand slipped off, and I grabbed the railing again with my left. That hand started to slip as well. My small fingertips left the rail and I started to scream.

Not two seconds had past when a firm hand grabbed my wrist. I looked up into the beautiful face of Harold Lowe.

"Hang on Giulia! I've got you!" I smiled and tried as best as I could to pull myself up. When I was high enough I sat atop the railing once more. Harry put an arm under my knees and around my waist and hauled me off. He sat down next to the wall. I started crying. He hugged me tightly. I didn't want him to let go.

"It's okay, you're safe now," he hummed as I calmed down.

"Thank you Harry, thank you," I hugged him once more and we stood up. I wiped the tears from my eyes and he smoothed out my hair.

"What on earth happened?" I looked up into his worried face and sighed.

"Caledon Hockley," I winced at the sound of his name. He was enraged.

"Dear God! How much trouble can a man cause in one day?!" He walked over and grabbed the railing, his knuckles turning white.

"What do you mean?" I said, although I had a pretty good idea.

"Mr. Moody, Mr. Murdoch and I caught his man threatening Ellen Lahr," I gasped and hit my forehead with the heel of my hand.

"You mean he caught her?!" He looked back and nodded.

"Tommy's going to kill me!" I walked over and sat, frustrated, on the ground. Before Harry could ask anything, I looked up and explained myself.

"Ellen's boyfriend, Tommy, asked me to look after her when she was talking to Cal, because they have a bad history. He hit her yesterday, which is how she got that bruise on her jaw, if you saw it. Anyway, I was trying to stop Lovejoy, but he hit me and Cal helped me up. He insulted Ellen so I defended her. I sat up on the railing, and pushed me off in anger, that…" I didn't want to curse in front of him.

"I'm so sorry that happened, Giulia. I'd arrest him, but I'm not sure if I have that power," I shrugged.

"What goes around comes around," I smiled, which made him smile. "Well, I have to find someone. Thanks again for helping me, I really owe you one," I gave him another hug and left.

I ran for the stern. Ellen's face after she hit Cal replayed in my mind over and over. I finally found her.

"Ellen!" She turned around and I embraced her. I started to cry again. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! It's my entire fault!" She pulled me away and looked concerned.

"What do you mean?" She wiped away one of my tears.

"Tommy left to help Fabrizio, and left me to look after you. When Cal grabbed your collar, I ran up to go help you, but Lovejoy hit me and I fell. Cal helped me up and insulted you and Tommy so I tried to defend you. I couldn't come help you because he pushed me over the railing," Her eyes widened.

"What?! I'm sorry I brought you into this, Giulia," I shook my head.

"I brought it upon myself. And, if you see Tommy, make sure he won't kill me for putting you in danger," She laughed and I couldn't help but laugh too.

"Will do," we hugged once more then departed. I walked back up the deck and sat in a chair. I watched the clouds swirl and fly from the cold April wind. It was a beautiful sight. I closed my eyes and smiled as Declan's face appeared in my mind.

"Giulia?" I woke with a gasp.

I squinted in the red-orange sunlight to find Declan sitting in front of me. I smiled and he took my hand.

"It's not morning, is it?" I sat up and rubbed my eyes. He laughed.

"Nah, just sunset. Are you tired? I can carry you to your room if you like," I smiled and brought the back of my hand to my forehead.

"Oh kind sir, please help me. I need to get to my room, but I am much too tired!" He laughed.

"Well then, miss, I shall help you!" He picked me up and I laughed. When we made it to my room I wasn't too tired. He set me down and climbed onto the berth. I kicked off my pumps, threw off my coat, and put my necklace in my jewelry box. Declan dumped his boots onto the floor, and tossed his coat onto the couch. I didn't really feel like changing, so I kept my gown on.

He hopped out and flicked off the lights. I lay down and rested my head on the pillow before he climbed in. I lay in the middle, so he didn't have room to lie down. Instead, he walked on his hand and knees and towered above me. He leaned his head down and kissed me.

He pulled away and smiled and I leaned back in, but a sharp pain shot through my stomach. I yelped, and he sat up.

"Giulia? Are you okay?" I shook my head. "What happened?"

"I don't know I just got this terrible pai-" I froze in horror.

"What is it? What's wrong?" He stopped stroking my skin.

"Something terrible is about to happen. I know it. I recognize this pain. It happened just hours before my father died," I looked into his eyes. He saw my expression and sighed.

"It's all right, love, you'll be fine as long as I'm here," he said softly. "Now sleep, I can tell you're tired," He kissed my forehead and I drifted off with him right there with me.


End file.
